Placing Canada on the Celestial
Map

Alouette

In the 1950's at the
height of the Cold War, DRB laboratories
were involved in research and development
to keep Canadians abreast of leading
edge technology and ensure that Canadian
forces were adequately equipped for their
defence role.

Research at the DRTE
was directed at improving communications
via various radio bands. In that era,
prior to communications satellites, High
Frequency (HF) or short wave radio was
the main mode of communication, particularly
over long distances. However, HF radio
depends on reflections from the ionosphere,
a layer of ionized gas high above the
Earth. The ionosphere tends to be irregular,
particularly at northern latitudes, and
often causes severe difficulties in maintaining
radio contact. At DRTE, studies to improve
such radio communications were a prime
area of research. Although both theoretical
and field studies were carried out, such
studies were limited by the scarcity
of ionospheric data, available from only
a few sites and from the lower layers
of the ionosphere. Scientists had long
dreamed of using a satellite to study
the ionosphere from above. The Americans
and the Soviet Union had both announced
plans to launch artificial satellites
as part of the International Geophysical
Year program in 1957-1958. The Space
Age began with the launch of Sputnik
1 on October 4, 1957. The first American
satellite, Explorer 1, followed on January
31, 1958. The Americans then solicited
proposals for involvement of scientists
from other countries in joint programs.
Canada was quick to respond.

1960 H. Raine and
A. Molozzi install
a galactic noise
receiver on Transit
IIa, an early
American navigation
satellite. Launched
on 22 June 1960,
it carried the
first Canadian-built
hardware into
orbit. This galactic
noise receiver
was a prototype
of a receiver
later carried
on Alouette
Photo CRC 60-4229

Ground-based
techniques used to study
the ionosphere are similar
to radar. Radio pulses
were transmitted from
the ground and reflected
back to the ground by
the ionized layers. The
elapsed time was used
to calculate the height
of the layers and the
frequencies reflected
gave a measure of the
density of electrons.
The equipment used to
make these measurements
was known as an ionosonde
and the data were presented
in a format called an
ionogram. Analysis of
ionograms from a network
of ionosondes was used
both empirically to predict
the frequencies for use
on specific circuits,
and to test theoretical
models of the ionosphere.

The Canadian proposal
was to integrate an ionosonde into a
satellite. Several advantages were anticipated.
For the first time, the "topside" of
the ionosphere could be observed giving
much more information about the layers.
A sequence of ionograms recorded as the
satellite orbited the Earth would show
spatial variations. Observations could
be made over inaccessible terrain such
as Northern Canada. Six counters for
energetic particles were to be included,
as it was felt that a knowledge of energetic
particle fluxes would be essential to
an understanding of the ionosphere, particularly
in auroral regions. This experiment was
to be provided by the National Research
Council. A simple audio-frequency receiver
with AGC (automatic gain control) was
to be coupled to the sounding antenna.
The receiver was intended to measure
audio-frequency atmospherics, whistlers,
and VLF emissions, particularly in the
auroral zone where VLF emissions appear
to be related to ionospheric storm effects.

1961:
Alouette was tested in a thermal vacuum
chamber specially built at the Canadian
Armament Research and Development Establishment
(CARDE) at Valcartier, Québec.
Photo CRC61-RPL-0142

The objectives were
twofold:
Primary

To bring Canada
into the Space Age by developing a
space capability.

To contribute to
space engineering and technology.

To improve the
capability to use High Frequency communications
by studying the ionosphere from above.

Scientific
To measure the electron density distribution
in the ionosphere at altitudes between
300 and 1000 kilometres.

To study for a
period of a year, the variations of
electron density distribution with
time of day and with latitude under
varying magnetic and auroral conditions,
with particular emphasis on high latitude
effects.

To determine electron
densities in the vicinity of the satellite
by means of galactic noise measurement,
and to make observations of related
physical phenomena, such as the flux
of energetic particles.

The proposal was submitted
in 1958 and accepted by NASA on April
20, 1959. While several people had input
to the original concept, the proposal
was submitted to NASA by Dr. John Chapman
and Dr. Eldon Warren. Chapman became
the Program Manager. Keith Brown headed
the engineering team. Dr. Colin Franklin
was responsible for the electrical systems
and John Mar for the mechanical design.
Eldon Warren led the group of scientists.
On the 25th anniversary of the Alouette
launch, a list was compiled of more than
100 people who worked on Alouette for
at least a year.

The spacecraft was
largely designed and integrated by the
DRTE team. It was very sophisticated
for its time, making use of transistors
and solar cells, a new space age technology
for generating electricity. One group
of DRTE engineers was familiar with transistors
from their experience in developing a
Doppler radar navigation set for aircraft.
Some elements were provided by Canadian
industry. De Havilland built the satellite
structure, and their Special Products
and Applied Research Division (SPAR)
developed the long antennas known as
STEMs (Storable Tubular Extendable Member).
RCA of Montreal was called upon to design
a special transmitter to transfer large
quantities of data from the satellite
to Earth stations.

1962:
John Chapman, leader of the Alouette
program, in front of the Alouette
1 launch vehicle, a Thor-Agena
B rocket.
Photo CRC62-6586

Other DRB laboratories
were also involved. Specialists at the
Defence Chemical, Biological and Radiation
Laboratory (DCBRL) ensured the reliability
of the batteries. Facilities for environmental
testing were installed at the Canadian
Armament and Research Development Laboratory
(CARDE) at Valcartier, Québec.

The sounding antennas
(STEMs), which protrude from the satellite,
were a unique feature of Alouette. Based
on an invention of NRC engineer George
Klein, they were the first product of
the de Havilland division that became
SPAR Aerospace Inc. Made of heat annealed
spring steel, four inches wide, and wound
flat on spools during satellite launch,
they formed closed tubes one inch in
diameter when extended. After the satellite
was injected into orbit, the antennas
were extended by an electric motor driving
rubber friction-bands, to form two rigid
crossed dipoles 150 feet and 75 feet
from tip-to-tip. A NASA team under John
Jackson worked with their Canadian counterparts.
NASA provided final environmental testing
and the launch vehicle and facilities.
Alouette 1 was launched on September
29, 1962 from Vandenberg Air Force Base,
California, aboard a Thor Agena B rocket.

With Alouette, Canada
became a space faring nation, the third
country after the USSR and USA to have
built a successful satellite. Alouette
was the cornerstone on which Canada became
a leader in the peaceful uses of space
and on which a competitive space industry
has been built. Designed for a one year
lifetime, the spacecraft exceeded all
expectations and was decommissioned on
its tenth anniversary. Canadian engineers
acquired expertise in space technology
and became known for the reliability
of their products. It was one of the
most successful scientific satellites
ever and ushered in a new era of scientific
co-operation. More than one million ionograms
were produced. Canadian scientists gained
prominence as world experts on the upper
atmosphere. In 1987, Alouette was designated
one of the ten most outstanding achievements
in the first 100 years of engineering
in Canada. In May 1993, the global significance
of the project was recognized when it
was designated as an International Milestone
of Electrical Engineering by the Institute
of Electrical and Electronic Engineers
(IEEE), the largest technical organization
in the world.

In accepting the IEEE
Milestone Award, which honours significant
world achievements in electrical, computer
and electronic engineering, Admiral J.R.
Anderson, Chief of the Defence Staff
commented, "I can't help but marvel
at the brash confidence, - the boldness
- of the group at DRTE who decided to
take on the world and build one of the
most complex satellites of its day, and
to do the job so well that it set world
records for scientific discoveries, for
length of deployed antennas, for battery
life and for longevity in space." At
a time when most satellites had a useful
life span of a few months, Alouette functioned
for ten years, before it was turned off
from the ground. At the ceremony, Colin
Franklin, one of the original members
of the Alouette program noted, "NASA
later admitted publicly that they and
the CRPL (Central Radio and Propagation
Laboratory in the US) were so convinced
that Alouette could not possibly function
for more than an hour or two, if at all,
that they had made no plans to use data
from it."

A plaque commemorating
the engineering milestone is on display
at the Shirleys Bay research site. The
plaque also commemorates the more than
one hundred people who worked on the
Alouette program.

Alouette 1 was followed
by the ISIS program in which the space
technology was transferred to Canadian
industry and three more Canadian scientific
satellites were built.

Historical Documents

The prototype of Alouette
1 and many related artifacts are preserved
in the permanent collection of the Canada
Science and Technology Museum.
Many of the pieces are on display in
the permanent space exhibit at the Museum.
Considerable documentation and photos
are associated with the collection. Information
on the photos used in the exhibit is
available in the Resource Centre of the
Museum.

Dr. John Chapman's
papers are held in the National Archives
of Canada.